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Happy New Year from the U.S. government. Now, empty your pockets. We have to give your money to someone else.
On Jan. 1, the Affordable Care Act's coverage law went into effect, requiring a slew of new Obamacare taxes, fines, and fees to finance hundreds of billions in costs the government requires to operate the program.
Those who fail to comply will receive a tax on their annual IRS bill, while a greater share of Americans who do comply will experience higher premiums and significant changes to their previous coverage.
Welcome to the Dark Side of the Affordable Care Act, the part where we actually have to pay for all those great benefits we've been hearing about for more than three years.
The new healthcare law has noble intentions, but essentially boils down to a massive redistribution scheme that lines the pockets of insurance companies in part by using the threat of a steep annual fine (or Obamacare tax, if you believe the Supreme Court).
It also drives up premiums, redistributes middle-class wealth to the uninsured, and fails to achieve what should have been the primary goal of healthcare reform: Better, more affordable care for everyone.
In fact, for many Americans, the combination of new Obamacare taxes will make healthcare less affordable this year.
New Obamacare Taxes You Can Expect in 2014
Here are the major new Obamacare taxes, fines, and fees that Americans will get saddled with in the New Year:
- The Big Tax-Kahuna: The most notable fine centers on the individual mandate, the rule that orders every American to purchase health insurance or else pay a fine to the IRS. Those who fail to purchase insurance by April 1 - and don't belong to a union or other entities that have received exemptions from the law - will need to pay a fine. For a law that was passed with "fairness" as a central tenet, this law is anything but fair. The fine for noncompliance in 2014 will be $95, or 1% of household income, whichever is higher. For a person earning $50,000 a year, this fine amounts to $500, which may not be enough to deter many people from buying insurance since rates and premiums have risen substantially across the country.
About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.
HEALTHY DIET & HEALTH CARE
It is said ( by doctors) that 50% of anybody's health is determined by genetics. For example, if you inherit a cardiovascular issue, there is little you can do in the end. However, the journey and speed you travel to the end is controlled by YOU. How is that?
Well, you control lifestyle issues like diet and exercise that have a huge impact on your overall health. In addition, eating fatty foods, smoking, drinking excessively all contribute to bad health outcomes for everyone. So, the degree to which you are able to reduce or eliminate known risk factors is money in your pocket as doctor visits you avoided.
Diet is one factor that can have immediate results for just about anybody. I reduced my weight by 15 pounds in two months by making dietary changes. For example, dinners down to about 400 calories most of the time. Salad for lunch. Oatmeal for breakfast. Lots of walking instead of short drives like most people do all the time. You can build exercise into your daily routine and with a healthy diet, improve your overall health.
Now, no matter if the Federal government runs the healthcare industry as a "single payer", or not, you still are no healthier just because you have a health care insurance policy and pay monthly premiums. Health care in the West was never cheap to begin with. That is presumably why so many poor were uninsured. In order to increase the overall health of Americans and keep costs down will require a different individual approach, one that encourages healthy living and systemic PREVENTION.
The old medical system in place since World War II emphasized treating symptoms, NOT "prophylactics". We eat meat & potatoes, drink alcohol, and sit around watching NFL games and wonder why after 30 years we have expensive health conditions. ObamaCare has not changed how the system works nor reformed its weaknesses. Only you can do it!
You are an idiot. Nothing more than a shill for the "hate Obama at all costs, no matter if what he asks is good OR bad for the country, block any and everything Obama wants" forces. Do you seriuosly want no healthcare? Do you seriously want to go back to the old way? do you want it to be totally unaffordable for anyone except the super rich? cause thats what it sounds like you are saying. And it will sound that was until you make some counter proposal, eg "whats YOUR idea"? I havent heard ONE useful thing as far as ideas out of the anti Obamacare forces; only darts being thrown and dumbass "solutions" like "let people buy healtcare over state lines, which will lead to the insurance companies all moving to states with laws advantageous only to them, just like the credit card and big financial companies (and i'm sure everyone wants insurance to be like that!). So, until you come up with your own proposal, shut the hell up.
Mark English
Raleigh, NC
"Do you seriously want to go back to the old way?"
Yes, it was much less expensive. Now I can only afford to cover my children and not myself because "I make too much" to qualify for a subsidy.
You people looking for government to actually help or do good in the affairs of the individual are a burden to our society.